Chapter 19 A Sudden Early Morning

Qi Chengming didn't sleep well that night.

As the morning swaying sensation mingled with the aroma of food wafted in from outside the window, his mind was a jumbled mess of thoughts: "soap," "alcohol," "glass," "white paper," "mining," "salt making"... a variety of technologies and details swirled around him. The imposing face of his high school chemistry teacher, his mouth opening and closing, made him feel utterly exhausted from sleep.

Slowly, the carriage came to a stop.

Qi Chengming's dry eyelids twitched, and he suddenly woke up.

"Xiao Dezi, what time is it?" He sat up sleepily and asked in a loud voice.

The curtain was lifted, and Xiao Chengzi peeked in, bringing with it the light from outside into the carriage: "Your Highness, we have already passed Yichuan."

He confessed honestly, counting on his fingers:

"Chief Steward Song had the caravan stop for an hour to make purchases. The kitchen staff went to replenish fresh meat and vegetables, and several artisans also received notes and funds as His Highness instructed. Sister Bishu said that more insoles and wound medicine need to be purchased, as many people were quite exhausted from walking yesterday. Xiao Dezi bought everyone a sample breakfast, Commander Mao is organizing his men to catch up on sleep, and the rest are taking turns eating..."

Qi Chengming shielded his eyes from the glaring light with his hands, then bent down and went to the carriage frame to look around.

In the distance, the outline of a town could still be vaguely seen, left behind by the convoy; that must be Yichuan. The entire group was now encamped near Shili Pavilion on the outskirts of Yichuan. Along the main road, there were tea vendors, resting travelers, other merchant caravans, and the elegant carriages of officials. Everyone bustled about, each stopping near the road, respecting the others, creating a lively and peaceful atmosphere.

Qi Chengming's entourage was the largest, its carriages decorated with five-clawed dragon patterns, and guarded by imperial guards every few steps—they looked formidable. Therefore, no one dared to approach them; everyone remained quiet. Only the occasional slurping sound of swallowing could be heard from within the ranks.

Qi Chengming noticed that what everyone was eating wasn't anything valuable—a bowl of hot noodle soup and a fragrant flatbread.

He was somewhat tempted.

Xiao Chengzi had already cleverly picked up the food tray: "Your Highness, where would you like to eat?"

"You don't need to hold it for me, go and eat it yourself." Qi Chengming looked around. The person closest to him was Master Huang, who was a young man, so thin that he was almost unrecognizable. He didn't have the convincing air of a "master" at all and was sitting cross-legged on the ground eating the pancakes without any regard for his image.

Seeing Qi Chengming approach, the other man didn't even lift his eyelids. Qi Chengming followed suit and sat down beside him, bringing over his noodle soup, then grabbed a flatbread, blew on it, and popped a bite into his mouth, mumbling casual conversation as he asked:

"Mr. Huang, do you usually know how much these flatbreads are priced?"

I must say, this kind of rustic, down-to-earth food is quite delicious. The fermented dough is seasoned with a little salt and ghee, and then baked into a flaky pastry that is thin in the middle and thick around the edges, resulting in a crispy exterior and a soft interior.

But Qi Chengming had been on tenterhooks since he woke up today. The curse of running out of money kept swirling in his mind, making him anxious to find out the specific prices outside the palace as quickly as possible.

Master Huang said calmly, "A flatbread costs two coins, and a bowl of noodle soup costs one coin."

Qi Chengming looked around and quickly did some calculations: "..."

With a convoy of two hundred people, the flatbread was quite generous, twice the size of his palm, thick and fluffy. The noodle soup wasn't just watery broth either; it was full of filling noodles. Let's assume that a hundred Imperial Guards could eat at most three flatbreads and a bowl of soup, and the other hundred people each had one flatbread and a bowl of soup. All together... this breakfast only cost... one or two taels of silver?

Qi Chengming was stunned for a moment.

Seeing his reaction, Master Huang continued, "Food is cheap, but timber will be more expensive. Ordinary ash or beech wood costs five hundred coins for three pieces, which is already a material that a moderately wealthy family can afford. If Your Highness wants to build a palace in the future... I wonder what your plans are?"

What specifications and type of wood are you looking for?

Qi Chengming, still unsure of the situation, didn't give a definite answer and pressed further: "Approximately how much silver would it normally cost to build a prince's mansion?"

Master Huang fell silent for a moment, looking somewhat displeased. After a long while, he slowly said, "I wasn't involved, but based on the specifications and materials, I estimate... it would cost at least 200,000 taels of silver, with a hundred craftsmen working together."

He glanced at the convoy behind him, the implication being clear.

Qi Chengming choked.

Two hundred thousand taels of silver? Excuse me!

Putting aside the fact that he doesn't have 200,000 taels of silver, even if he did, what couldn't he do with that 200,000? Building it all into a magnificent mansion would be too wasteful and extravagant!

Qi Chengming couldn't make any promises to Master Huang, the architect of the Prince's mansion; he couldn't even come up with ten thousand taels of silver. He could only feign composure and change the subject:

"I think ash wood is quite nice... By the way, my grandfather told me that you, Mr. Huang, are from a nearby town?"

Just then, Xiao Chengzi brought over a small table and placed it in front of Qi Chengming. On the table were two small dishes of meat sauce and pickled vegetables that Wang Shuo had given him, which he wanted His Highness to eat with the flatbread and side dishes to make it a better meal.

Master Huang, holding the sesame flatbread, glanced over it, his eyes glued to it, then suddenly fixed on it, a hint of interest in his gaze: "..."

"Come on, have a pair of chopsticks." Qi Chengming kindly invited Master Huang to eat the pickles with him.

The young man immediately started attacking without any hesitation; having eaten their food, he felt obligated to help. When Master Huang spoke again, his tone was much softer:

"I was born in Ruzhou and made a living by gathering firewood and hunting from a young age. I gradually developed an interest in architecture..."

“Isn’t our next destination Ruzhou? If it’s close by, Mr. Huang can go home and visit his neighbors.” Qi Chengming said this in an attempt to win over Master Huang.

This eccentric master was determined to practice in Liuzhou and then run away, but Qi Chengming coveted him and wanted to add him to his talent list.

Imagine this: Master Huang, who has always been alone and unsuccessful, is now a guest of honor of a prince upon returning to his hometown. What will the villagers think of this?

The thing that no one can resist most is returning home in glory.

Since Master Huang has no one in his family who cares about him, I wonder if he can withstand this little bit of honor and fame?

"..." Master Huang indeed fell into a hesitant silence, looking somewhat conflicted, with a hint of hatred in his expression.

Qi Chengming immediately perked up.

He wasn't afraid of trouble, but he was afraid that Master Huang was like a hedgehog, impossible to bite. Now it seemed—they had to make a trip to Master Huang's hometown when they passed through Ruzhou!

Mr. Huang, what grievance do you have? Tell me, and I, the prince, will seek justice for you!

"Fine."

Master Huang finally agreed with great reluctance and gave an unfamiliar place name.

Fortunately, Master Huang's hometown didn't require a detour and was roughly on the route to Liuzhou. Qi Chengming immediately sent Xiao Chengzi to inform Commander Mao and make minor adjustments to the direction.

Their next destination is Yiyang, which is nearly 80 miles away from Yichuan!

As expected, they will arrive at Master Huang's hometown three days from now.

...

However, on the second night, Qi Chengming, who was sleeping in the carriage, was suddenly woken up silently.

It was Steward Song, his dark eyes gleaming sharply in the night, as he whispered:

"Your Highness, wake up... Something has happened outside."

A flash of snow-white light caught Qi Chengming's eye; it was the long sword that Steward Song was holding in his hand, protecting him.

"...?" Qi Chengming suddenly became completely awake.

A note from the author:

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Qi Chengming (expectantly): Mr. Huang, a man I haven't gotten yet!

Manager Song: Heh.

Wang Shuo, far away in Beijing: Ha.

The minister, who was about to make his appearance: ...Ha!

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